Naruto: The Legend of Red Haired Shanks

Stopping Shanks? Even for Obito and Black Zetsu, that was nothing more than wishful thinking. They had no way to actually do it. 

In fact, because of their own identities, they didn't even dare get too close to Shanks. 

They had never encountered Observation Haki before, but based on the rumors, they could tell that under Shanks' Observation Haki, all of their secrets would be completely exposed. 

And as for Shanks' other ability—seeing the future? 

It's easy to figure out—such a powerful ability must have serious limits. Otherwise, Shanks wouldn't have been tricked by Orochimaru just because of it. 

"Stopping Shanks isn't really possible. That guy is way beyond what we can handle right now. 

But stopping Nagato? That shouldn't be too hard." 

Black Zetsu spoke up. 

"Who?" 

"Jiraiya. Nagato's identity is already exposed. All we need to do is leak information about Amegakure, and no matter what, the Five Great Nations will get involved. 

When that happens, Jiraiya will definitely go up against Nagato." 

A sly smile crossed Black Zetsu's face—this was his plan: expose the Akatsuki's base directly. 

If Nagato wanted to keep playing his game, he'd need even more power. 

And where would that power come from? Only the Ten-Tails could produce enough White Zetsu. Once things were back under their control, the ninja world would no longer be in chaos. 

"One of the Three Sannin, Jiraiya, huh?" 

Obito thought about Jiraiya. As Minato's former student, he knew him very well. 

There was no doubt—Jiraiya had once been the strongest of the Three Sannin. Some even considered him the most powerful ninja in Konoha for a time. 

"If even a ninja like my teacher, who had no special bloodline, could be trained by Jiraiya into a genius of the ninja world... 

Then Jiraiya himself must be a true genius—one who doesn't need any bloodline to back him up. His strength is probably among the very best in the ninja world right now." 

Obito sighed. He knew his teacher's strength—Minato had almost defeated him back then. 

But that "almost" was exactly the gap between ordinary people and the Uchiha. Without the support of a powerful bloodline, an ordinary person would always just be ordinary. 

"If Jiraiya had been born into a ninja clan, his achievements might have been on par with Uchiha Madara's. What a shame." 

"Bloodline is an unbreakable wall between ninja clans and common people. Even Shanks is no exception. Without the Uzumaki bloodline, he will never become the strongest in the ninja world." 

Black Zetsu agreed with Obito's view. Just looking at the top fighters in the ninja world now was enough to prove how important bloodline was. 

Orochimaru's current strength—was it really because he was strong? Not at all. What was strong was his Devil Fruit, what was strong was the legendary creature, the "Dragon." 

Obito had understood this truth when he met Madara over ten years ago. A noble bloodline would always be the most important thing. 

It was the Uchiha bloodline that allowed him to go from being a weakling to the powerful figure he was now. 

Among the ninja clans—especially the Uchiha—bloodline was everything. 

Yet back then, Madara had gained a new perspective after meeting Shanks. 

Shanks' strength didn't come from his bloodline—it came from his fearless pride, the kind that made him look down on the world itself. 

If Shanks had never appeared, Madara would have remained the same Madara. His power wouldn't have changed in the slightest. 

After all, even in the face of death, Madara had never once been afraid. 

But because of Shanks, Madara started fearing death—just like Orochimaru, who hid away in the Dragon Vein. That was when Madara truly realized he had been born in the wrong era. 

A world without Shanks was just too boring. 

As for Uchiha Madara himself, his strength had long surpassed the limits of his clan. He no longer relied on Hashirama's cells. 

Even without all of that, he was still Uchiha Madara. But without Uchiha Madara, the Uchiha clan might not even be the Uchiha clan anymore. 

Jiraiya wasn't the first person in the ninja world to have an awakening. The first was Uchiha Madara himself. Before his death, the pride that had stood tall in him for decades completely shattered his instinct to survive—allowing him to step into the realm of conquerors. 

And Jiraiya? 

Jiraiya was no ordinary ninja in the eyes of Obito and Black Zetsu. He was far from just another common shinobi. 

Right now, Jiraiya was second only to one person. 

But aside from him, no one knew about this. 

Because under Shanks, there was also Orochimaru, along with many other powerful figures who stayed hidden, thinking highly of themselves. 

"So they're finally making a move… and they're only sending Jiraiya as a guard?" 

A month passed in the blink of an eye. 

In the massive pit prison of the Land of Wind, all the prisoners were brought out. 

Up in the sky, Jigen had been waiting for a long time. 

These ruthless criminals from the ninja world were exactly the kind of people he needed. 

"A ninja world without Shanks is just too boring. 

That guy is supposed to be the strongest man in the ninja world, yet nothing happened in an entire month. 

But things won't be so easy from here on, Shanks." 

Jigen hid within the clouds, looking down below. 

His presence was completely concealed—he didn't even release a trace of killing intent. 

His eyes held nothing but cold indifference. 

In Jigen's view, aside from Shanks, everyone else in the ninja world was just worthless trash. 

Because of this, Jiraiya below hadn't noticed anything unusual. 

The other ninjas? 

There was no need to mention them—no matter how hard they tried, they wouldn't be able to sense anything from the clouds above. 

"I don't know what your plan is, but once I take in these pirates, I'll just follow whatever move you make. 

Let's see just how far you, the so-called Four Emperors, can go with me standing in your way, Shanks." 

A smile appeared on Jigen's face. 

He could hardly wait to meet Shanks—he was the only person he had acknowledged in thousands of years. 

The only one in his long, dull existence. 

"The power of Devil Fruits really is something else. 

This kind of strength is way more practical than divine techniques." 

Jigen stretched out his hands, and a terrifying energy spread outward. 

Dozens of kilometers away, clouds started moving toward him. 

The Float-Float Fruit—a very ordinary Paramecia-type fruit. 

At least to Jigen, its ability was nothing special. 

Of course, it still suited his identity as a "visitor from beyond." 

Was the fruit itself powerful? 

Jigen didn't think so. 

Power wasn't about the fruit—it was about the user. 

Even the Chakra Fruit, one of the strongest powers out there, was wasted on Kaguya. 

In the end, she was still just a failure. 

Meanwhile, Jigen only needed an ordinary Devil Fruit to become a powerhouse. 

That was the difference—the difference between true strength and ordinary people. 

"They're here." 

Jigen looked up. 

The clouds above him were getting thicker, but he was controlling them on purpose. 

There was no rush. 

Now wasn't the time to make a move. 

On the ground, the pirates were being taken onto sand ships by the ninjas. 

After seeing that pirates could sail ships across the desert, Sunagakure had made their own. 

For a village skilled in puppet technology, it wasn't difficult at all. 

The only problem was finding the right people to operate them. 

But after getting lost in the desert dozens of times, these ninjas finally figured out how to sail properly. 

"So this is the kind of ship the pirates use?" 

"It's been modified. 

It's designed for sailing on sand, but it only works on dry terrain. 

If it rains and the sand gets wet, it won't be able to move."

A ninja from Sunagakure spoke up to explain while glancing at the sky. He couldn't shake the feeling that today's weather was a bit strange. 

"Does it rain often in the Land of Wind?" 

Shikamaru was curious. This place didn't look like it got much rain, but he had heard that the Land of Wind had changed recently. 

"Not really, but it rains from time to time around the craters. 

Ever since Shanks and Orochimaru wrecked the Land of Wind, the entire region's climate has shifted, and now other areas sometimes get rainfall too." 

"The weather has become unpredictable." 

The Sunagakure ninja lowered the sail, and the ship started moving. 

More than ten large ships slowly pushed through the desert, their sails catching the wind. The sound of the wind and sails echoed across the sea of sand. Onboard, uniformed soldiers stood at their posts with serious expressions. 

The Sunagakure ninja explained the changes in the Land of Wind to Shikamaru and the others, who listened with curiosity. 

After the collapse of the Konoha Destruction Plan, relations between Sunagakure and Konohagakure had actually improved significantly, turning them into close allies. 

 Because of this, the ninjas from Sunagakure were more than willing to talk with their counterparts from Konohagakure. 

On another ship sat Jiraiya, Guy, and Chojuro from Kirigakure. 

Chojuro had just returned from the Three Great Sacred Lands. He seemed more composed than before, as if he had gone through a lot. 

"The common people really hate these pirates. Things must be getting worse, right?" 

Chojuro frowned as he watched how the soldiers treated the captured pirates. If ordinary people had this much resentment, then the situation in the Land of Water was likely even more complicated. 

"It can't be helped. This whole revolution started with pirates rising up from among the commoners, and the civilians have suffered because of it. 

But sometimes, sacrifices are necessary." 

Jiraiya spoke calmly. Seeing the civilians' hatred for these pirates was actually a good thing. 

Hatred wasn't what Jiraiya wanted to see, but compared to the despair and numbness he had witnessed before, the determination in these soldiers' eyes gave him hope for a new era. 

Chojuro fell silent after hearing Jiraiya's words. 

Compared to the past, Chojuro had definitely matured a lot. 

At the rear of the fleet was Killer Bee, who had also returned from the Three Great Sacred Lands. His strength had grown significantly. 

Inside Killer Bee, the chakra of the Eight-Tails had started gathering again. He could faintly sense Gyuki's spiritual power returning. 

The fleet moved steadily toward the coastline. 

With Jiraiya, Killer Bee, Chojuro, Guy, and Mui onboard, even if the great nations sent their best ninja forces, it would be nearly impossible to capture them. 

However, the further they traveled, the more uneasy Jiraiya felt. 

After the Dragon Vein erupted, the weather in the Land of Wind had indeed become strange—but nothing like this had ever happened before. 

"Ninjutsu: Alarm Bell Technique!" 

Jiraiya clasped his hands together, and in the next moment, bells attached to everyone on the ship rang out urgently. 

Everyone's expressions changed instantly. 

Shikamaru's body was covered in a layer of shadow that wrapped around him. Beside him, Chouji was ready for battle, standing protectively in front of Ino. 

On the other side, Kiba, Shino, and Hinata also entered combat mode, though they didn't reveal any special abilities right away. 

Meanwhile, Neji, standing near Tenten and Lee, locked his eyes onto the sky. 

"The enemy is behind the clouds!" 

Neji had also become a Devil Fruit user. His Caged Bird Seal and Byakugan had merged, forming the power of the Paramecia-type "Caged Bird" Devil Fruit.

His Devil Fruit ability had only one effect: locking onto an enemy within his line of sight and linking them to himself. 

At that moment, a strange mark appeared on Jigen, who was floating in the sky. Through the mark, Jigen could now see exactly what Neji was seeing. 

"What a weird ability. But since I've been discovered, there's no need to hide anymore. Hahaha!!" 

A loud, arrogant voice echoed from the sky. As the laughter rang out, the clouds split apart layer by layer, revealing a dark figure in everyone's sight. 

"I didn't expect to be found out." 

"But since that's the case, let me show you the power of the Sky Pirates' captain." 

Jigen stepped forward with one goal: to put on a show. 

To make these pirates follow him, he had to impress them. Strength and presence—he needed both. 

But the people below weren't giving him even a second to breathe. The so-called "invincible moment" simply didn't exist in this ninja world. 

Chojuro's twin swords instantly expanded, forming massive spheres of chakra. The next moment, he swung his attack with full force. 

"Boom!!" 

A shockwave blasted across the ground, making the entire ship sink slightly. Sand was kicked up into the air, and two huge chakra spheres tore through the sky, shooting straight at Jigen. 

At the same time, at the back of the ship, all eight of Killer Bee's short swords were drawn. With just a few quick steps, he launched himself into the sky. 

"Moonwalk—Frenzied Blade Slash!" 

White flashes of steel burst from Killer Bee as he unleashed a flurry of attacks with everything he had. 

Chojuro did the same. 

However, Jigen only frowned slightly. 

"Great White Cloud—Dragon Fang Smash!!" 

The white clouds behind him surged violently, instantly forming a massive dragon's head that charged straight at Killer Bee and Chojuro's attacks. 

"You mere ninjas… you're still too weak!!" 

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